The present invention relates to a method for treating a hair shape and an apparatus for treating it; said method being capable of treating hair for giving a shape thereto smoothly after softening treatment of hair with applying or spraying a softening agent, and its shape giving effect reaching to every portion thereof, thereby a given shape lasting for a long term, in comparison with a conventional method.
Human hair is generally composed of a protein called keratin similarly as skin and a nail. It is said that if keratin of hair is analyzed further in detail, an individual hair is composed of a medulla (a core/the marrow) composing the center of the hair; cortex a (cortex (portion in which spindle-shaped or cigar shaped cortex cells in which small keratin fibers are staffed up densely are vertically stuffed up densely)) composing circumference of the medulla; a matrix (gap-filling substance), which is superior in water absorptivity and moisture-holding ability, and which mutually bonds the cortex; and a cuticle composing circumference of a hair (a hair cuticle).
Therefore, essentially, it is preferable to keep it in mind to sufficiently supply high quality protein composing keratin in an everyday meal by taking, for example, meat and beans affluently to hold hair healthy forever. However, since hair is exposed outside, hair is easily damaged by being subjected to a sunbeam, adhesion of various kinds of materials floating in the atmosphere, and the like. Therefore, only the supply of previously described high quality protein is not sufficient for maintaining ideal health of hair, and it is the fact that a person does health care of a hair by giving oneself a shampoo, treatment or the like in order to remove the previously described damage from outside.
In addition, man is not satisfied with merely health care of a natural hair and satisfy his own sense of beauty by changing his hair-style variously, i.e., putting an artificial measure such as a permanent straight, a permanent wave or treatment on natural hair.
In conventional treatment (permanent treatment) technology to give a desired shape to hairs such as a permanent straight or a permanent wave, a softening treatment is conducted by applying or spraying a first liquid (a softening agent, a reducing agent, or cold liquid) to the whole hair which was washed cleanly, and then the whole hair is split into in a plural number, heat-treatment and combing are given on the split hair, or a cream-like material is applied, or the split hair is wrapped around hair rods in the event of a permanent wave, and then a hardening treatment is given by applying or spraying the second liquid (a hardening agent, an oxidizer or cold liquid), and in the case that hair rods are wrapped around with hair, they are detached after predetermined time, and finally a rinse treatment with warm water or the like is given.
In case of the conventional treatment technology of hair shape such as, for example, a permanent treatment, a treatment, or the like, there has been employed only so-called chemical treatment in which the hardness of hair is varied by sufficiently spraying cold liquid (a first liquid and a second liquid) on a matrix and a cuticle portion of hair, and in the treatment, heat-treatment and combing are given, or a cream-like material is applied to hair, or shape treatment of attaching and detaching hair rods to and from the split hair. Because of this, a shape maintenance effect of a hair of a straight permanent, wave permanent or treatment is very short-lived.
It is thought that there is a cause in that a sufficient softening treatment and hardening treatment of hair cannot be conducted because it is necessary to apply or spray cold liquid in a constant short time because cold liquid gives remarkable damage to hair in a healthy state, and therefore it is impossible to make cold liquid fully spread out to a matrix and cuticle. In addition, it is generally believed to be one of the causes of the state that shape maintenance of hair is short-lived that a shape maintenance effect of hair after a permanent treatment is lost gradually because hair has a nature of returning in a natural state.
Thus, for example, a trial to variously adjust pH or the like of cold liquid depending on nature of hair of an individual person to be subjected to a permanent treatment is made in order to be able to hold a shape-maintenance effect of hair by the aforementioned cold liquid for a long time. However, it is the fact that a sufficient shape-maintenance effect cannot be obtained still now.
By the way, a number of polypeptide chains (the main chains) composing keratin, which is the chief ingredient of hair, are lined up in a vertical direction of a hair, and adjacent main chains make mesh structure by being connected with each other by means of side chains of cystine linkage, salt linkage, hydrogen linkage, and the like, and that by means of these linkages, hair is full of elasticity, and hair has a power of restitution to return in a former form immediately after a hand is released from the hair even if it is bent.
It is thought that to weaken power of restitution by cutting side chains of the cystine linkage, salt linkage, hydrogen linkage and the like, which give this power of restitution to hair is a function of the first permanent liquid, and to restitute linkage of a side chain at a new position where the hair is bent is a function of the second liquid, and a durable wave or the like is formed by means of this serial reaction. Of course, a principle of changing curly hair to extend twisted hair into straight and a principle of making a wave hair into straight hair are the same.
Previously described cystine linkage is also called Sxe2x80x94S linkage, and it is thought that atoms of sulfur are mutually connected in form of xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94, and as a result hardness and elasticity similar to a nail are given to keratin, which is protein of hair. In a permanent treatment, it is the primarily important treatment to cut this cystine linkage, which is strong side chain linkage, and this cystine linkage is cut with the first liquid. And next, re-linkage of sulfur atoms by the second liquid is waited for, and a maintenance state of treated hair shape is prolonged.
By the way, thioglycolic acid, cysteine or acetylcysteine is usually used in the first liquid as a reducing agent. A point of sameness in component structure of these three kinds of reducing agents is to include a portion where a hydrogen atom links with a sulfur atom directly. A chemical reaction cutting of cystine linkage by the first liquid is shown in the following scheme. 
Cystine linkage in hair reacts with thioglycolic acid and is cut, and each sulfur atom couples with a hydrogen atom, and S-H linkage is formed. On the other hand, two molecules of thioglycolic acid couple with each other after the reaction to turn into dithioglycolic acid (DTDG). Incidentally, likewise in the case of cysteine wave agent, cysteine changes into cystine, and acetylcysteine changes into acetylcystine. They flow outside the hair by being washed out in water at the end of the permanent treatment.
When the reaction by the first liquid was finished, a mesh structure of the hair collapses, and keratin gelates. The hair loses elasticity in this way to be softened. The cystine linkage cut in this way is subsequently coupled again by being subjected to an operation by an oxidizer contained by a second liquid, and cystine linkage is re-constructed in keratin as shown in following scheme. 
Incidentally, as the chief ingredient of the second liquid, three kinds of sodium bromate (NaBrO3), potassium bromate (KBrO3) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) are employed generally, and, for example, in a case that NaBrO3 is used, NaBrO3 is decomposed into water and sodium bromide (NaBr) after the reaction as shown in the above-mentioned scheme. If attention is paid to cystine linkage, such an operation to hair by permanent liquid can be summarized into the words: xe2x80x9ccystine linkage of keratin is cut by means of a reducing agent in the first liquid, and it is re-constructed by an oxidizer in the second liquid to be returned to cystine linkage.xe2x80x9d
However, treatment of wave hair or straight hair cannot be done only by means of the aforementioned agents of the first liquid and the second liquid. That is, as mentioned above, actions of an agent to hair is cutting and reconstruction of side chain linkage in protein of hair. It is necessary that cystine linkage is reconstructed in a new position of a state in which hair is bent by hair rods or a state in which hair is straightened by a comb during the reaction by such an agent. Therefore, when a wave is given to hair, there is the case that it is preferable to use hair rods to give such a form or the case that operation with the hair iron or the like is necessary; and when hair is straightened, operation of combing or the like becomes necessary.
In addition, in a stage of treating such a hair shape, it is generally performed at the same time to subject the hair to a heat-treatment (physical treatment) to give constant time and constant temperature to the hair. This takes advantage of thermoplasticity of a medulla, cortex, a matrix, the cuticle, and the like, which compose hair for shape transformation effectively and aims at synergy with operation of the aforementioned agent (chemical treatment) to a hair.
However, because a method for treating a hair shape of the previously described permanent treatment or the like uses an agent and heat, for example, in treating a hair shape which takes advantage of an agent, an amount of the agent for usage and use of an agent must be kept strictly, and the agent must be treated carefully. In addition, there is the problem that damage to hair increases when cutting is advanced by the first liquid to such a degree that revitalization of cystine linkage in keratin is impossible, and on the other hand, hair is damaged, and a treatment to give a predetermined hair shape cannot be performed when a treatment by the second liquid is not complete.
Further, there is a fear that health of skin and hair is lost depending on the way of handling an agent for a person constitutionally showing abnormal reaction such as allergic reaction against these agents. Therefore, if operation of an agent to a hair can be made more effective, miscellaneous expenses attendant upon treating a hair shape can be reduced, and damage to hair can be reduced because quantity of an agent to be used can be reduced.
In addition, in treating the hair shape that uses heat, a user must be patient enough to continue sitting down for a long time under a hot electric heater. In addition, there are various kinds of problems that hair is damaged remarkably or a burn is given to head skin or the like when adjustment of temperature is mistaken.
In order to solve the aforementioned problems, JP-A-8-299046 discloses a method to treat a shape of hair by giving supersonic-wave vibration to hair without employing an agent or heat and a device for the method. In addition, JP-A-9-262120 discloses a method to use cold liquid together with supersonic-wave vibration. Further, the hair-set devices which take advantage of supersonic-wave vibration in the same manner are disclosed in JP-A-9-262119, and JP-A-9-262121.
However, how much period a shape of treated hair is held is not disclosed in a J-P-A-8-299046. In addition, in treating hair using supersonic-wave vibration including JP-A-9-262120 referred to above, it is thought that it is preferable that relatively strong vibration is used to such a degree that sufficiently high contact pressure can be given to hair as described in, for example, JP-A-9-262123 disclosing a method for treating hair which takes advantage of supersonic-wave vibration in the same manner. However, it is difficult that such a strong vibration is generated in nature of a vibration-outbreak device in the case of supersonic-wave vibration, and it becomes necessary to use a lower frequency band.
Incidentally, a supersonic wave is used for supersonic-wave diagnosis devices discovering abnormality of the human interior of the body, but there are many unveiled portions as to the influence that a supersonic wave gives to the human body. Supersonic-wave diagnosis devices are limited to temporary use in a diagnosis, but in the case of using a supersonic wave for an appliance to be frequently used in daily life like a hair-treating device (a hair-set device), as a result, the influence of the supersonic wave is continued to give to a brain as a whole for a long time. Thus, there would remain a doubt from the point of security.
The present invention has been made in view of the aforementioned prior-art problems and aims to provide a method for treating hair shape capable of giving a shape to hair smoothly and to keep hair shape for a long term and a treatment apparatus therefor.
According to the present invention, there is provided a method for treating a hair shape comprising the steps of:
subjecting hair to softening treatment by applying or spraying a softening agent or applying a hair-treating agent, and
giving vibration of predetermined frequency not exceeding 20 KHz being lower than that of ultrasonic wave to hair to give a desired shape to hair.
Here, a hair-treating agent means a dyeing agent, a treatment agent, a setting lotion agent, or the like; and more specifically, a hair manicure agent, a hair treatment agent, a hair styling agent, a hair rinse agent, a hair cream agent, a hair mousse agent, a hair gel agent, a hair pack agent, or the like.
In a method for treating a hair shape of the present invention, it is preferable to apply a frequency within a range of 1 Hz to 5000 Hz, more preferably 10 Hz-100 Hz. In addition, a method in which heat of a fixed temperature is given to hair while the vibration is given to hair and/or in at least before or after the vibration is given to hair to give a desired shape to hair is preferably employed.
A hair iron or a hair rod is preferably used as such a means to give a desired shape to hair. Incidentally, in a hair iron, there are various kinds of forms such as a flat iron and a round iron depending on a rod shape. However, the present invention is not limited by its form.
In addition, according to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus to be preferably used in carrying out the aforementioned method for treating a hair shape. That is, according to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for treating a hair shape to give a desired shape to hair after being subjected to a softening treatment by applying or spraying a softening agent, or after being subjected to applying a hair-treating agent, wherein the apparatus is provided with a vibrating means capable of vibrating with a frequency of not exceeding 20 KHz being lower than the frequency of ultrasonic wave while touching hair to give a desired shape to hair.
Here, it is preferable that the device comprises a heating means to give predetermined heat compulsorily to hair. In addition, as a vibrating means, an electrically operated motor, an electromagnetic actuator, or a ceramic actuator may be used. Further, it is preferable that frequency of the vibrating means can be changed so that a portion touching hair can resonate and a resonance frequency can be changed. In addition, it is also preferable that a grip portion is provided with a vibration proof element so as to reduce vibration transmiting to a human hand by a vibrating means.
One of such treating apparatus for giving desired shape to hair is a hair iron treating hair by sandwiching hair. In this case, it is preferable that the hair iron has such a structure that vibration generated by a vibrating means is given to both or one of the upper rod and the lower rod of the hair iron, or both the upper and the lower rods alternately. Incidentally, as another embodiment of a treating apparatus which gives a desired shape to hair, there is a hair rod around which hair is wrapped to be treated.